Details regarding individual modules are posted below. Each student enrolled in the course is to take exactly 3 modules throughout the semester. Students choose the modules they want to take, rank ordering by their preference, and email them to David Lightfoot, the director . Students are asked to list at least 3 in order of their preference. Students also need to register for the course itself via the usual registrar's process.   

Descriptions of Modules

Prof. Rhonda Dzakpasu
Departments of Physics and Pharmacology
dzakpasu@physics.georgetown.edu
http://pharmacology.georgetown.edu/faculty/facdzakpasu.html

Meeting place:  TBD
Meeting time: January 19, 26 (Fridays), February 2 (Tuesday), 10:15AM-12:00PM
Maximum enrollment:  10

Neurons in Action

These three two-hour sessions will explore the tutorials of Neurons in Action (NIA). NIA is a very popular computer-based interactive simulation program that provides an excellent introduction to electrophysiology outside of the experimental laboratory environment. The students will work at there own pace, as these tutorials are highly suitable for students with differing backgrounds in neurophysiology.

For the first session, I will present and describe some of the mini-movies that demonstrate the effects on membrane potential when the magnitude of a stimulus is varied and also when potassium channels are blocked. In addition, I will use these mini-movies to outline which conductances are responsible for generating the action potential as well as describe the propagation of the action potential in both myelinated and un-myelinated axons.

The next two sessions will involve the students in working through the introductory tutorials in NIA. These will be highly interactive, as the students will be challenged to change various parameters and predict the outcome before running the simulations. If time permits, we will begin to work through the more advanced tutorials. Students will be graded on homework and class participation.

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Prof. Josef Rauschecker
Department of Physiology and Biophsyics, GU Medical Center
Phone: 202-687-1580
rauschej@georgetown.edu
http://gumc.georgetown.edu/departments/physiology/rauschecker.html

Meeting place:  New Research Building, WP19
Meeting time: February 9, 16, 23 (Tuesdays), 4-6PM
Maximum enrollment:  10

Integrative Neuroscience and Cognition: Functional Organization and Plasticity of the Cerebral Cortex

My research tries to understand the neurobiological bases of perception, cognition, and memory. The cerebral cortex is the main site in the brain that is thought to be involved in these higher functions. Therefore, we are trying to figure out how the cortex works, especially with regard to visual and auditory perception, as well as visual-auditory integration. The cortex is also a very smart structure in that it is capable of self- and re-organization during development, and after injury or sensory deprivation.

During three two-hour sessions we will discuss some of the above topics. One session will concentrate on vision, one on audition, and the third on brain plasticity. Students will also visit our laboratories and (hopefully) do a few simple experiments or at least look at results from recent studies performed in our lab. Each student will write a short paper on one of the topics, integrating the contents of the group discussions with the lab results. The grade will be based on this paper and on the contributions during class.

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Prof. Chandan Vaidya
Department of Psychology
306 White Gravenor
cjv2@georgetown.edu
http://explore.georgetown.edu/people/cjv2/?PageTemplateID=131

Meeting place:  WGR 308
Meeting times:  February 18, 25, March 4 (Thursdays), 11:30AM - 1:15PM
Maximum enrollment:  8

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

The research module will focus on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), a relatively common developmental disorder that disrupts cognitive functioning. You will be introduced to the clinical diagnosis and cognitive dysfunction that characterizes the disorder and some ongoing research about the neural basis of the disorder from Dr. Vaidya's laboratory.

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Prof. Maximilian Riesenhuber
Department of Neuroscience, Medical Center
Phone: 202-687-9198
mr287@georgetown.edu
http://riesenhuberlab.neuro.georgetown.edu/

Meeting times:  March 23, 30 and April 6 (Tuesdays); 1-3PM
Meeting place:  New Research Building, WP07A (Neuroscience Library)
Maximum enrollment:  8

"Brain reading:" What can we do today, what are the challenges, what is the potential?

The recent popular literature is rife with reports of machines reading people's minds, people controlling robots through their thoughts etc.
(see, e.g., http://www.slate.com/id/2161936/nav/tap1/, http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn7304.html,
http://www.wired.com/gadgets/miscellaneous/news/2007/05/binoculars).

This module will consist of three two-hour sessions in which we will explore the basic idea and current technologies behind "brain reading", their capabilities, limitations, and potential. In the first session, I will be giving an overview of techniques. In subsequent sessions we will be discussing original key research papers showing "brain reading" in vision and motor control. Grades will be based on class participation. Students might have the opportunity to participate in ongoing EEG-based "brain-reading" experiments. Some interest in quantitative approaches to cognition will be helpful.

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 Prof. Paul Kainen
Department of Mathematics
Director, Laboratory for Visual Mathematics
Phone: 202-687-2703
kainen@georgetown.edu
http://www.georgetown.edu/faculty/kainen/homepage.html
http://harary.math.georgetown.edu/lab/visualmath.html

Meeting times:  April 12, 19, 26 (Mondays); 430-630PM
Meeting places:  St. Mary's Hall, Room 309 (Math Dept. Computer Lab)
Maximum enrollment:  8

Diagrams and Thought with Applications to Art, Dance, Architecture, and Mathematics

A diagram is a visual array of symbolic elements which guides thought (i.e., conveys meaning) not just through the selection of its elements, but also through the style in which elements are drawn and the geometric relationships among them.  Diagrams also have a syntax (rules which limit the possible elements and their relations).  For example, a sheet of paper with handwritten (or printed) words, a musical score, a map, a statistical chart, the graph of a function, and a schematic of internet hubs all constitute diagrams.

Understanding diagrams involves both cognitive and perceptual aspects which we will investigate.  This topic is especially relevant due to the huge volume of information which the average person is now expected to assimilate.  An additional reason to study diagrams is the possibility (afforded by new technology) of creating both dynamic and 3-dimensional versions.

The module will consist of two lectures and one interactive session where we will build a class webpage, with an outline of the major issues and ideas, including pointers to on-line graphics that illustrate the topics.

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